College can be a time of self-discovery and self-growth. Whether this means discovering new hobbies, trying a new area of study or exploring your sexuality, students learn a lot about themselves in four short years. While all of these shifts are widely acknowledged as part of the “college experience,” religion and spiritual growth are often overlooked, despite their significance.
Students may arrive at Dartmouth with an understanding of their spiritual identity, but exploring religion in such a culturally rich and pluralistic environment can spur introspective development, according to a survey conducted by The Dartmouth Apologia, a Christian journal. In an increasingly divided society, many college students are turning to theology for answers and finding hope, community and compassion along the way.
Anthony Fosu ’24 has explored the intersectionality between academia, culture and religion since he arrived on campus. Fosu is a student leader for Morning Glory Christian Fellowship: an inter-denominational Christian group on campus that seeks to amplify African American religious traditions. While discussing the overlap between the civil rights movement and Christianity, Fosu emphasized the unity that arises through connecting spirituality with African American history.
“I’ve seen the need for grounded experiences in spirituality — however you want to define that — being essential for community building beyond our shared physical identities,” Fosu said. “Even in communities that aren’t as diverse as Dartmouth, you can still see that unity.”
Fosu’s faith manifests itself in his service for other people. Whether that means providing waffles and water to classmates engaging in late night festivities or through his role as senior class vice president, Fosu is committed to embodying Christian values.
“When I say I believe in Jesus, it’s important to me that I reflect that through my actions,” Fosu said.
Brianna Nesselrodt ’21, who pursued a Master’s in biblical counseling and co-founded the Vox Christian Fellowship after graduating from Dartmouth, explained that despite her parents’ Christian beliefs, she did not feel passionately about Christianity until her undergraduate experience. During her freshman winter, Nesselrodt found a special sense of belonging within the Christian community after struggling with personal issues through her first few months on campus.
“The most important thing I think we forget is that you’re not supposed to do your faith alone,” Nesselrodt said. “We’re not here to judge. The point is to provide support so that you can love and serve others and God better than I could [alone]. That’s the goal.”
Gracie Bartos ’27, who lives in the Interfaith Living Learning Community, has found that Dartmouth’s spiritually-diverse environment challenges religious biases. In contrast to her experiences with the theologically-confining nature of her hometown church in Arizona, Bartos said that the religious community at Dartmouth has made her feel like less of an outlier.
“Here, no one’s asking you to subscribe to anything. You can pursue your own path,” Bartos said.
Though she is Episcopalian, Bartos has attended Mosque, participated in Shabbat and has spoken with campus ministers of different faiths to garner a more diverse view of religion.
“The thing that we all have at our core that is intrinsic to every single faith tradition is compassion,” Bartos said.
Hillel vice president of programming Owen Seiner ’24 explained that in comparison to the strong Jewish community he is a part of at home in Florida, there is very little infrastructure for Judaism in the Upper Valley. For example, The Pavilion — located within Foco — is one of only two kosher restaurants in New Hampshire.
“There [are] not a lot of ways for you to be a really religious Jewish student,” Seiner said. “And, and as a result, most of the Jewish students at Dartmouth are highly secular and aren’t really engaging with religious customs and practices.”
Jewish spaces and events — like Shabbat dinner — are open to non-Jewish students as well. However, some Jewish students such as Seiner believe that educating those outside of Judaism is often emphasized more than creating supportive spaces for Judaic practices.
“It’s really difficult to find places on campus and experience the worship style that a larger Jewish community would have,” Seiner said.
This difficulty was echoed by TJ Parekh ’24, who said that there is little support for Hindu students on campus beyond the limited prayer events hosted by the Tucker Center, and those activities inconveniently fall on Friday evenings.
“Especially from a student perspective, Friday is the time to hang out with friends, get meals or take a break from everything, and I think the weekend could be better utilized for religious events,” Parekh said.
According to a member of the Class of 2027, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about his experiences, actively practicing religion can demand significant effort, despite numerous religious resources at the College. For him, the answer to balancing religion and life on campus meant taking a step back from faith, explaining how it is difficult to practice Islam while balancing rigorous courses, friendships and athletic competitions.
While he said he still feels religious, he has spent less time praying, worshiping and reading the Qu’ran since matriculation. For instance, at home, he prays regularly five times a day, but on campus, that number becomes two or three times.
“I’m not able to fully practice or offer prayer five times a day because of my schedule,” he said. “And for our compulsory prayers, we don’t have a specific prayer room.”
Though Dartmouth has let go of its founding Protestant beliefs, an institutional bias still lingers uncomfortably. According to Parekh, the College has repeatedly failed to incorporate student feedback and neglected the structural foundations of the minority religions on campus. Consequently, many non-Christian religious events lack accessibility.
Similarly, Seiner believes that there can be balance between educating others on religious pluralism and cultivating safe spaces for identifying members of those religions. However, this cannot be accomplished without recognizing the value and intersectionality of the communities that surround us.
The pluralism at Dartmouth and the spiritual communities found here are invaluable assets for probing religious beliefs. Nesselrodt recommended that students take advantage of their time in the woods to connect with their beliefs and build a strong spiritual foundation.
“You only have four years at Dartmouth. All the things you build up here will eventually fade,” Nesselrodt said. “I know so many people who have graduated from Dartmouth and tried to create little Dartmouths in New York or wherever they live, and there’s just so much more not only after Dartmouth, but to the life and the things we’re pursuing here.”
Correction Appended (October 12, 10:25 a.m.): A previous version of this article listed Owen Seiner '24 as president of Hillel instead of vice president of programming.
